“I didn’t sleep last night.” Restless energy rolled off him in waves as he paced a tight circuit around the room. “I was too busy thinking about you, about us. About this second chance we’ve been given.”
“Second chance? I—”
Mitch took her hands, squeezed. “Just hear me out. There’s something between us, Tess. We both wanted more in Scotland.”
Her fingers clenched reflexively around his. It thrilled her to hear him confirm that, even as it terrified her.
“Maybe we didn’t plan on it, but so the hell what?” With every word, he closed the distance between them. “We found each other in the big wide world, and even after we went our separate ways, against all odds, Fate threw us together again.”
“In possibly the most awkward way possible,” she reminded him. Because his enthusiasm, his hope, was infectious, and she couldn’t risk allowing herself to believe in the fairy tale.
“It’s not ideal. I get that.” He cupped her face. “But I can’t walk away from this. I can’t walk away from you.”
Even as warmth pooled in her chest, Tess reached up, intending to pull his hand away, to be the voice of reason they needed. But she curled her fingers around his wrist instead, forging another link between them. “I’m not going to be here that long. Only a week.”
The dimple winked. “Look how far we got in the first one.”
More than halfway in love. Her heart teetered at the edge of the precipice just looking at him, every cell of her body wanting to lean into him with a resounding, “Yes!”
In a desperate bid for sanity, she insisted, “It’s not the same. It’s not just us this time.”
“So? Now’s our chance to figure out if we can make our real world lives mesh. We owe it to ourselves to explore this.”
Her heart began to pound with a desperate, fearful hope.
God, was that even a remote possibility? Did they have a chance in hell of finding a way to make this into something real and lasting? It terrified her how much she wanted that, how much she wanted to believe that they could make this work. If he’d been any other man, just a guy with no connection to her family, she wouldn’t be hesitating. But what if it didn’t work out? There was no question that it would break her heart. Could she really deal with the backlash of that every single time she came to visit her father? Was a week really enough time to figure any of this out?
Mitch stroked his thumb along her cheek, a whisper of a touch that had her turning her face into him, chasing the warmth. “Maybe it’s not as much time as we want, but it’s still more. And I’ll take every minute with you I can get. Don’t say no, Tess.”
Last night it had taken everything she had to talk herself out of this. To convince herself that keeping her distance was the responsible thing to do. But in the face of his plea—which felt a helluva lot like a declaration—she just…couldn’t. If that made her weak, she didn’t want to be strong. She just wanted this man in her life for however long she could have him, consequences be damned.
She closed the distance between them, lifting to slant her mouth over his. Mitch folded her into his arms, his hand slipping into her hair, even as his tongue slid into her mouth. She opened for him. His taste seeped into her, a drug she’d been too long without. Relief fueled the spark of desire, had her moaning, pressing closer, wanting more. His hand skated down her back, over her hip, tugging her against the hard ridge of his erection. Rising to her toes, she shifted her hips against him, seeking to assuage the ache between her thighs, and earned a growl in return. She needed him, needed to wipe out the time and distance between them. The knock on the door was the only thing that stopped her from dragging him back to the bedroom and picking up exactly where they’d left off in Scotland.
Mitch lifted his head, a faintly feral expression in his eyes. “Who the hell is knocking on your door at five o’clock in the morning?”
“Room service.” Tess stepped away, smoothing her hair down and scrubbing a hand over her face. As if that was going to somehow wipe away the thoroughly kissed expression. “Hide. You can’t be seen here at this hour. People will think you were here all night.”
With a wicked grin, he disappeared into the bedroom. God, she hoped h
e behaved himself. If he so much as crooked a finger, she’d be tempted to fall into that bed, and she had that conference call in fifteen minutes. Struggling to put the thought out of her mind, Tess tugged open the door. After a brief exchange that included profuse thanks and an enormous tip, she carried the hot water to the kitchenette and added one of the silk teabags she’d brought with her from England.
Hands slid over her hips, drawing her back against the length of Mitch’s body. He nuzzled at her neck. “You’re really stopping to make tea now?”
He was still hard, the ridge of his cock nestled against her backside. Tess curled her hands around the counter as her knees went loose. “I really am. Because I…have a video conference in—” She checked her watch. “—ten minutes, and I can’t…have you mussing me up any more than you already have.”
“Sure?” Mitch swiveled his hips.
“Oh God,” she moaned, giving in for just a moment to press back against him.
He nibbled at her ear. “I could be fast.”
For a few glorious seconds she considered it. As primed and on edge as she was, it probably wouldn’t take much. But she didn’t need to have post-orgasmic glow or sex brain going into this meeting. Reluctantly, she stepped way. “Fast is not exactly your hallmark. Nor would I want it to be.” Setting a timer for the tea, she turned. “You really probably shouldn’t muss me at all here. Too many prying eyes and ears who could take it back to my father. And I don’t want him to know about this. Not until we know—”
“—whether it’s worth moving heaven and earth and enduring the opinions of the family for. I get that. It’s gonna be an awkward situation. I’d just as soon not give your daddy reason to hire a hit man.”
“Don’t be absurd. My dad would not hire a hit man.” She paused for effect, keeping a straight face. “He’s got one on retainer.”
Mitch snorted. “Oh yeah, I met Kane last year.”